What specific practice should home cooks follow when initially freezing packages to mimic rapid freezing?

Answer

Spreading packages out in a single layer across different shelves until completely solid before grouping them.

To maximize quality retention at home, the goal of freezing should be speed, mirroring commercial flash freezing methods as much as possible. The most effective way to achieve this rapid freezing for multiple items is by avoiding insulation created by grouping. Home cooks are advised never to stack packages intended for freezing initially; instead, they should be spread out individually in a single layer across available shelf space. This maximizes the surface area exposed to the cold environment, allowing the items to freeze quickly until they are solid throughout. Only after this initial rapid freezing phase is complete should the solidified packages be grouped together for efficient long-term storage.

What specific practice should home cooks follow when initially freezing packages to mimic rapid freezing?

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